LOXAHATCHEE, Fla. Publix again canceled its COVID-19 vaccine discussion window on Friday due to delays in the delivery of vaccines.
Winter storms have caused the company to book the bookings twice this week, and seniors who would like to make appointments are asking if they can get the vaccine differently at their Publix pharmacy.
It is common knowledge that you can not just show up at a pharmacy in Publix and get the COVID-19 vaccine without an appointment.
But the perseverance of a woman from Acreage and a possible exhibition led to her getting the chance.
Week after week, 65-year-old Silvia Permenter tried to get a COVID-19 vaccine appointment via the Publix schedule website.
“Was very difficult to get, I could not. I was not happy to get an appointment,” Permenter said.
She has been out of work for two months and is afraid to return to class as a substitute.
“It’s scary, the coronavirus, because you do not know how it’s going to affect you,” Permenter said.
Determined to get the vaccine, she started calling her local Publix every day and asked if anyone had canceled their appointment or had not turned up. But each time, she was told to call later.
Permenter said there was never availability, until she asked to speak to the driver.
“I asked him, what is the protocol for the vaccinations, for the cancellations or the people that they do not show up? And he told me that they have a list,” Permenter said.
A spokesperson for Publix said they do not have a waiting list for vaccination, but that there are employees to vaccinate with remaining doses each night.
But Permenter said there was a waiting list at her local Publix, and when she spoke to the right person on Wednesday, she talked about it.
“They were getting vaccine shortages, so the last appointment was at 3 o’clock and he called me at 3 o’clock,” Permenter said. “He told me I’m happy and that it’s a cancellation so I can go get my vaccine.”
Silvia hopes she can return to work after the second dose.
“I feel very happy,” Permenter said. “You have to be persistent, you know? There are cancellations.”
Publix’s website tells customers that they can not make an appointment by calling the store or pharmacy.
The company asks people to continue to check the appointment website for updates on the following schedules.